The Bulgarian History Podcast

With the new title comes a new religion as Tsar Boris attempts to transform Bulgaria into a Christian European power. But how will the devoutly pagan Boyars treat this change they've been fighting for decades? Then, in part 2 of the episode, we'll hear how saints Cyril and Methodius set the groundwork for an alphabet that will one day be used by hundreds of millions. Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. You can find images for this episode at: www.bghistorypodcast.com/posts/012-saint-and-tsar Check out the book here: www.amazon.com/State-Builders-St…an/dp/6197814110/

It's time for the Pagans to strike back, as the Boyars and their ally take the throne and attempt to turn back the clock on Bulgaria's religious transformation. Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. You can find images for this episode at: www.bghistorypodcast.com/posts/013-bulgaria-reborn Check out the book here: www.amazon.com/State-Builders-St…an/dp/6197814110/

Conversion, fratricide, guerrilla warfare, and a rising power in the West are what greet the successors of Omurtag as an era of Bulgarian history draws to a close. Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. You can find images for this episode at: www.bghistorypodcast.com/posts/011-the-pagan-twilight-and-the-serbian-dawn Check out the book here: www.amazon.com/State-Builders-St…an/dp/6197814110/

Krum is dead, and with him his dream of conquering Constantinople. Now, his son Omurtag is only a boy and it remains to be seen whether he can wrangle the Boyars and the Byzantines to save Bulgaria. Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. You can find images for this episode at: www.bghistorypodcast.com/posts/010-the-builder Check out the book here: www.amazon.com/State-Builders-St…an/dp/6197814110/

A new Khan rises to power intent on crushing the Byzantines underfoot. The thing is, he just might have the cunning, skill, and brutality to do it. Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. You can find images for this episode at: www.bghistorypodcast.com/posts/009-khan-krum Check out the book here: www.amazon.com/State-Builders-St…an/dp/6197814110/

The Boyar reign of terror continues as they fight amongst themselves to decide the future of Bulgaria, and whether it will have a future. Will the pagan Proto-Bulgarians continue their dominance or will a new and more inclusive state form? Everything hangs in the balance. Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. You can find images for this episode at: www.bghistorypodcast.com/posts/008-blood-and-boyars-part-2 Check out the book here: www.amazon.com/State-Builders-St…an/dp/6197814110/

With the central power of the Khans weakened, the noble Boyars have taken over. One after one, they murder and exile their way through leader after leader. The question is whether the state can survive the chaos as a strong new Byzantine Emperor takes the reigns and sets his sights on Bulgaria's destruction. Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. You can find images for this episode at: www.bghistorypodcast.com/posts/007-blood-and-boyars-part-1 Check out the book here: www.amazon.com/State-Builders-St…an/dp/6197814110/

"Avitohol lived 300 years. His clan was Dulo and he ascended to the throne in the fourth year of the serpent." Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. You can find images for this episode at: www.bghistorypodcast.com/posts/006-the-fall-of-the-house-of-dulo Check out the book here: www.amazon.com/State-Builders-St…an/dp/6197814110/

So we find Bulgaria at the beginning of the 8th century still dangerously positioned on what was so recently Byzantine land, sandwiched between one of the great empires of the day and a vast and dangerous steppe full of volatile tribes. But the new Bulgarian state had just survived what history has shown time and time again to be one of the most dangerous moments of statehood: a transition of power. Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. You can find images for this episode at: www.bghistorypodcast.com/posts/005-a-savior-of-europe Check out the book here: www.amazon.com/State-Builders-St…an/dp/6197814110/

In the last episode we discussed the complex and chaotic series of events which led to the breakup of the Old Great Bulgaria based around modern Ukraine. We saw how and why the Slavs and the Proto-Bulgarians under Asparukh migrated down into the Balkans and how the Byzantines failed to stop them in spectacular style. Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. You can find images for this episode at: www.bghistorypodcast.com/posts/004-the-new-state-and-the-eternal-challenges Check out the book here: www.amazon.com/State-Builders-St…an/dp/6197814110/

It's the year 680. Byzantium marches with full strength to eradicate “a foul tribe” which has entered their borders fleeing an even more powerful steppe tribe behind them. What could go wrong? Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. You can find images for this episode at: www.bghistorypodcast.com/posts/003-crossing-the-rubicon Check out the book here: www.amazon.com/State-Builders-St…an/dp/6197814110/

The shifting contours of this debate have often reflected not only academic interest, but political ones. Today we discuss the very controversial topic of the Bulgarian origins. Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. Find more info and images for each episode at bghistorypodcast.com/posts/002-whose-5th-century-horse-tribe-is-it-anyway Check out the book here: www.amazon.com/State-Builders-St…an/dp/6197814110/

Introduction to the series from Eric David Halsey. My background and hopes for this series. Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. You can find images for this episode at: https://www.bghistorypodcast.com/post/000-intro-episode

Seeing as the next 100+ episodes are going to be audio, it's essential to begin with a good picture of the basic geography of Bulgaria and the Balkans Supporters like you make this podcast happen! Check out www.patreon.com/bulgarianhistorypodcast to see the great perks you can get for supporting us. You can find images for this episode at: https://www.bghistorypodcast.com/post/001-the-balkan-context Check out the book here: www.amazon.com/State-Builders-St…an/dp/6197814110/